Blog

THE CORDANT WEALTH FINANCIAL CLARITY BREAK

Retiring from Intel: Calculating Years of Service, Determining Retirement Eligibility and the Benefits of Being an Intel Retiree (Part 1)

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

Not everyone leaving Intel, even if it’s their last job, officially retires from Intel. The company has very specific retirement eligibility rules and subsequent benefits accruing to official retirees. And, as with all Intel benefit plans, these benefits can be enormously valuable but are often complex and difficult to determine how they apply to your specific situation. We help our... Read More

How to Stress Test Your Financial Plan: A Look at the Key Variables

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

As any engineer can tell you, sensitivity and stress testing are important tools in determining how a system can fail and therefore, determining the safe usage for that system. When it comes to your financial life, it should be no different. Stress testing your financial plan is an important exercise in determining the health of your wealth. While this a... Read More

Margin Debt Hits All-Time High, or Does It?

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

If it bleeds, it leads. ~Joe Loder in Nightcrawler Margin debt recently hit an all-time high—$528 billion as of February month end. But, by another measure, margin debt divided by underlying assets, it’s actually at a lower level than it was in February 2009—the start of the market recovery from the global financial crises. So, how concerned should you be... Read More

How Do You Know If Your Investment Strategy Has Stopped Working?

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

Over the last three calendar years, Global stocks (MSCI All Country World Index - ACWI) have returned a meager 3.7% annualized leading some to question their investment approach. Large market moves up are obviously fun, and even big moves down are often easier to ride out (at least you can see something happening) than a sideways markets. It’s extended periods of... Read More

Social Security Income: How to Delay and Optimize for Taxes

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

We received a couple of questions on our recent post “How to Increase Retirement Wealth With the Right Withdrawal Order” and will address the first one here. (Note: as we mentioned earlier this year, we will be making an effort to address more reader questions on the blog this year, so, if you have questions send them in.) The question... Read More

Contradicting Warren Buffett: When Volatility is Risk

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

Last week I enjoyed dinner with a group of people, one of which happened to be a hedge fund manager and fellow CFA charterholder. As us finance-types are wont to do, we quickly made our way to a discussion of every investment nerd’s favorite question: what is risk? Warren Buffett, in his 2014 Berkshire Hathaway annual letter (page 18), shared... Read More

How To Reduce Your Target Number and Retire Earlier

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

In a recent article, Michael Kitces points out the dual benefits in staying off of the hedonic treadmill as it relates to income increases throughout your career—higher savings today and a lower required replacement income (meaning a lower portfolio balance is needed) when you retire. These two factors make a powerful combination in moving anyone towards their retirement number much quicker... Read More

10 Things We Believe Wealth Management Should Be

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

1. We believe in being intentional What do you want to accomplish? Why do you want to accomplish it? Gaining this clarity by answering these “big questions” leads to better outcomes and a higher chance of success. When you get clear on your objectives, only then can the best strategy be put in place to accomplish them. Being intentional about... Read More

[W]indexing: When Average Isn’t Average

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident. –Arthur Schopenhauer 19th-century German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer thought truth (and in this case, we'll extrapolate to include “new ideas”) passed through three stages: ridicule, opposition, then acceptance. While the index fund, which turned 40 last year, is a... Read More

Financial Rules of Thumb: Debunking Common Misconceptions about Retirement Planning

  // by Isaac Presley, CFA®

Recently, legendary investor Charlie Ellis was interviewed by Barry Ritholtz on his Bloomberg Masters in Business podcast. The whole interview is worth your time, but here I wanted to focus on just one of the topics they covered: The danger in using rules of thumb. Here is the exchange: Ritholtz: As an investor, how do you aim in the right... Read More

Skip to content